The political spending behind Thanksgiving - Penny to lobby for dollar - Five questions for Jason Utton - Lobbyists, Hill staffers to mark Byrd anniversary with book event

THE POLITICAL SPENDING BEHIND THANKSGIVING: As you devour your Thanksgiving feast on Thursday, we’re sure the influence junkie in you will be thinking about the politics that went behind the food on the table. Whether it’s to satisfy your curiosity (as you more than satisfy your stomach) or to have random facts at the ready just to make conversation with that odd uncle you only see once a year, PI has you covered.

Last Thanksgiving, Dave had your back with this informative video: http://bit.ly/tkmGRS. And this year, PI once again looked into the lobbying and political contributions associated with the holiday.

In an election that saw unprecedented amounts of money, the National Turkey Federation set a fundraising record of its own, bringing in more than $310,000 and directing the bulk of its contributions toward Republican candidates and committees, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

The top recipients in the House were Rep. Bob Goodlatte (R-Va.), who received $8,000, and Reps. Frank Lucas (R-Okla.) and Vicky Hartzler (R-Mo.), who received $6,000 each. In the Senate, the top recipient, Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), got $5,500 from the group.

On the lobbying front, the group was less active this year compared to past years. It has spent $105,000 so far this year — significantly less than the $320,000 it spent each year in 2008 and 2009.

Another group, the National Wild Turkey Federation, which spent a record $160,000 on lobbying last year, has spent another $120,000 so far this year. Both groups have lobbied on conservation issues, among others.

Arguably the most crucial side ingredient of the feast, cranberries, had a not-so-crucial lobbying year. The major cranberry players — the Cape Cod Cranberry Growers' Association, Wisconsin State Cranberry Growers Association and National Cranberry Growers Association — all spent insignificant amounts on lobbying this year.

The biggest Thanksgiving-related lobby is unrelated to the feast, but for many, it’s the best part of the day: football. The National Football League has spent $840,000 so far this year on lobbying the federal government — half the amount it spent last year. The league has lobbied on legislation related to labor agreements and collective bargaining, performance enhancing drugs and head injuries.

PENNY TO LOBBY FOR DOLLAR: From the you-can’t-make-this-up file, former Rep. Tim Penny (D-Minn.) is becoming honorary chairman of the Dollar Coin Alliance, a lobby mainly consisting of retailers and mining companies that wants the government to ditch the paper dollar in favor of its little-used metallic counterpart. Penny says he’s joining the organization because the dollar coin is a “common sense idea that also makes enormous fiscal sense.”

The alliance argues that switching to a dollar coin would save the nation billions of dollars in coming years, and it has spent plenty of coin lobbying in favor of legislation, such as the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings Act, which aims to begin such a transition. During the first nine months of this year, it’s spent $650,000 on federal lobbying, compared to $600,000 during 2011 and $90,000 in 2010, federal records show.

Thanks for reading, safe travels to all who are leaving town, and now, back to the day’s top influence industry news ...

FIVE QUESTIONS FOR WAR VETERAN-TURNED-LOBBYIST JASON UTTON: Jason Utton is the director of federal governmental affairs for NextEra — and a veteran of the Iraq war. He started working for NextEra in 2008 as a wind developer and moved to the Washington, D.C. office in July to work on the company’s lobbying team.

Q. Can you describe your transition from “the battlefield to the greenfield”?

A. It’s been a long road. When you’re coming from the military, it’s difficult to transition into the corporate world. The nature of the military is in the structure. The missions are much more direct. There are a lot of different roads you can take. I joined Cameron-Brooks — their big mission is to help officers transition. They look at everything you’ve done in the army, what you think you would be good at and prepare you for a career conference.

I interviewed with NextEra. They were a very responsible energy company. During my four tours — two in Egypt and two in Iraq — when I would think about all the things I loved about America, I thought about the heartland. It was great having the opportunity to be a wind developer there.

Q. Was working on energy policies something you thought about while you were deployed in Iraq?

A. It’s not an awakening. I kind of always wanted to serve my country. I wanted to do my part. I was deployed to Egypt on Sept. 11. I didn’t even see any of the live footage of the attacks until months after. That kind of shifted my attitude. Throughout my deployment, I would see how dependent we were on that part of the world for oil. We’ve really got to find a place in our country where we aren’t dependent on any part of the world for anything. We need to work really hard and have domestic sources of energy.

Q. Do you think you offer a different, more effective perspective while lobbying on energy issues?

A. I believe all veterans have a different perspective. I wouldn’t say I do it better. But when I’m talking to members of Congress, I do tell them I’m a veteran, and I will share stories that are important to what we are trying to accomplish.

Q. Do you think candidates this election cycle addressed the energy issue enough, or do you think it was an issue lacking in discussion?

A. Clean energy and energy policy has been addressed quite a bit. I hear things on both sides that are encouraging.

Q. Do you think the country is headed in the right direction in terms of energy — what you hoped for while you were away?

A. I think what’s happened is there’s been a lot of talk about domestic energy — let’s bring our troops home and focus on nation building. There isn’t a lot of compromise right now. I’m hopeful that once the election is over, we can work together to move our country in the right direction. I’m hopeful and optimistic that once Congress does come back, we can put the people first. I know this is the greatest country in the world. We fought to keep her on top. We are on top in a lot of areas. I want us to be the greatest country in the world in the energy arena. I don’t want to give our renewable energy edge to China.

LOBBYISTS, HILL STAFFERS TO MARK BYRD ANNIVERSARY WITH BOOK EVENT: Several lobbyists are helping sponsor a book event marking the 95th anniversary of the late Sen. Robert Byrd’s birth with a book signing event 6 p.m. tonight at The Monocle in D.C. Ira Shapiro, who wrote " The Last Great Senate," will be on hand to sign his book and take questions, as will David Corbin, author of " The Last Great Senator: Robert C. Byrd's Encounters with Eleven U.S. Presidents."

Tom Altmeyer of Arch Coal, Mike Fulton of The Arnold Agency and Carl Bentzel of DCI are helping lead the event, which is being hosted by the West Virginia Society of Washington, D.C. Suzanne Bentzel, a staffer with Sen. Jay Rockefeller (D-W. Va.), and Chelsey Hathaway, a staffer with Rep. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W. Va.), also helped plan the event.

FOR YOUR CALENDARS:Women in Government Relations’ PACs Politics and Grassroots Taskforce is hosting a forum entitled “Creating Balance in an Unbalanced Political World,” where attendees will learn to answer this question: “When the political world has gone haywire, how can you create balance between competing agendas, political parties and the time and attention of your advocates and donors — all while staying sane?”

Speakers at the event, which runs from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Dec. 3 at the Capital Hilton in D.C., include Charlie Cook of the Cook Political Report, as well as “leading fundraising experts” and “top congressional staff. There will also be representatives from Twitter, ASAE, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Conference of State Legislatures. Registration info: http://bit.ly/QsygCW

ELSEWHERE IN THE INFLUENCE WORLD:

• Republican donors are still upset about Gov. Chris Christie embracing President Barack Obama after hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey, reports Michael Barbaro of The New York Times. http://nyti.ms/XZ4cR3

• Unions are launching a series of TV ads Tuesday urging members of Congress to let the Bush tax cuts expire, reports Kevin Bogardus of The Hill. http://bit.ly/WhS7kV

• For the first time since 2007, the National Organization for Marriage saw its fundraising declining in 2011, reports Jillian Rayfield of Salon. http://bit.ly/T9htke

• The Democratic National Committee’s Brad Woodhouse and Republican National Committee’s Sean Spicer have gotten themselves into one hair-raising tangle — all in the name of charity. http://bit.ly/UPC4tA

Authors:

About The Author

Anna Palmer is a senior Washington correspondent for POLITICO and co-author of POLITICO’s Playbook, the most indispensable morning newsletter for the biggest influencers in politics.

Anna covers the world of Congress and politics, and has successfully chronicled the business of Washington insiders for years. Her stories take readers behind the scenes for the biggest fights in Washington as well as the 2016 election.

Prior to becoming POLITICO’s senior Washington correspondent, Anna was the co-author of the daily newsletter, POLITICO Influence, considered a must-read on K Street.

Anna previously covered House leadership and lobbying as a staff writer for Roll Call. She got her start in Washington journalism as a lobbying business reporter for the industry newsletter Influence. She has also worked at Legal Times, where she covered the intersection of money and politics for the legal and lobbying industry, first as a staff writer and then as an editor.

A native of North Dakota, Anna is a graduate of St. Olaf College, where she was executive editor of the weekly campus newspaper, the Manitou Messenger. She lives in Washington, D.C.

About The Author

Dave Levinthal reports on political influence issues for POLITICO. Before joining POLITICO, Dave worked for two years as editor of OpenSecrets.org at the Center for Responsive Politics, where he oversaw the Center's original journalism and provided analysis to hundreds of television, radio and print news outlets.

Between 2003 and 2009, Dave reported on Dallas City Hall for The Dallas Morning News, and from 2000 to 2002, covered the New Hampshire Statehouse for the Lawrence (Mass.) Eagle-Tribune. He graduated from Syracuse University with degrees in newspaper journalism and political philosophy and edited The Daily Orange.

Some may argue, but there is no more dedicated Bills fan than this Buffalo, N.Y., native.